Christ Episcopal Church
April 26, 2015
4 Easter B
Every year for the past almost 20 years, Christ Church has been part of Springfield's Interfaith Thanksgiving Service. The service began some 35 years ago as the joint effort of Covenant Presbyterian Church and Temple Sholom. Over the years, the service has grown to include the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Episcopal, and various Protestant churches, along with the An-Nur Islamic Center.
Every year, the clergy and various lay leaders gather to plan a service in which we can all give thanks together for our many blessings. As you might imagine, some careful and creative planning is required as we create a service based on what we hold in common rather than focusing on anything that may divide us. The service is rich with shared stories, prayers, and music from our various traditions and each year the service is held in a different house of worship. We learn something about ourselves and about each other as we engage the sacred writings and traditions of other faiths. After the service we enjoy one another's company over coffee and cookies and we have built good relationships with each other over the years. And, over the years, we have developed deep respect for one another's faith.
So, I am caught up short by Peter's proclamation in the reading from Acts this morning. "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved." Peter sounds exceedingly exclusive. There is no salvation at all for those who do not believe in Jesus? When we gather with our brothers and sisters of other faiths at Thanksgiving, are we to believe that their faith traditions are just wrong and we Christians have the only path to salvation? At a deep intuitive level, that claim seems wrong to me. Fortunately, all of our readings this morning provide some context for hearing Peter's words.
This morning, Peter and John have just healed a man who was lame from birth when we find them in prison, being interrogated by the entire family of the high priest. The charge against the two men is first that they are teaching about the resurrection, then that they have claimed some power that does not belong to them. Peter's defense argument is brilliant. Peter transforms the charges against him from a charge of blasphemy to the charge that he has done a good deed for someone who was sick. Who can argue against a good deed done for someone who is sick? Peter's claim is that he could not heal the man by his own power, but that the lame man could only be healed by Jesus, thus proving that Jesus was the Messiah. Peter is not speaking to the Roman Council, and he has no other faith in mind when he tells his very own people that their salvation comes through Jesus. Peter is essentially saying "Look what amazing things God is doing in our midst!" A few chapters later, in Acts chapter 10, Peter will say "I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him." Peter is not preaching an exclusive gospel. In our reading this morning, Peter is challenging his own people, and a few chapters later, Peter is clear that God shows no partiality.
The 4th Sunday of Easter, which is today, is traditionally known as "Good Shepherd Sunday." On this Sunday every year, we hear one of the gospel stories from John that portray Jesus as the Good Shepherd. Today, we hear Jesus say "I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own and my own know me. And I lay down my life for the sheep." Over the centuries, the church has tried to figure out who, exactly, Jesus sheep are. Who is in the fold and who is out? The seemingly obvious answer is that Christiana are Jesus' sheep. And we are. But Jesus also says "I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice." Jesus' claim is that he has sheep we don't even know about, who will also listen to his voice. Just a few verses earlier, Jesus said "The sheep follow the Good Shepherd because they know his voice." The very definition of Jesus' sheep is that they know his voice and follow him. That is the whole definition. We do not get to control who is in the fold and who is not. Jesus does. And in John's gospel, that news infuriates his audience.
But to focus on the sheep is to miss the point. The point is the Good Shepherd. When Jesus says "I am the Good Shepherd," he is not simply saying that he will take good care of the sheep. Through out the Old Testament, in the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, and in the Psalms, specifically the 23rdpsalm that we read/sang this morning, God is identified as the Shepherd. In the Hebrew Scriptures, most of the work of the Shepherd has to do with justice, providing food for the poor, strengthening the weak, and binding up the injured. When Jesus says "I am the Good Shepherd," Jesus is pointing to those very scriptures and telling his listeners that he is God.
Many chapters later, at the end of John's gospel, after Jesus has been crucified and has risen, three times Jesus will ask Peter, the same Peter we hear from in the reading from Acts, "Peter, do you love me?" Three times, Peter will say "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." And each time, Jesus will respond "Feed my sheep." Feed my sheep. The work of the Shepherd and the work of the sheep is the same-the work of justice, feeding the hungry, strengthening the weak. The command of the gospel is that we love Jesus by feeding his sheep. As the writer of 1 John so pointedly puts it "How does the love of God abide in anyone who has the worlds goods and sees a brother or sister in need and refuses to help?" The command of the gospel is that we love Jesus by feeding Jesus sheep. That is our job. The Good Shepherd's job is to gather the sheep. And all of the sheep Jesus gathers, where ever they come from, whoever they may be, are our brothers and sisters.
Amen.
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